STERLING -- As legendary college basketball coach John Wooden quipped, "If you don't have time to do it right, when will you have time to do it over?"

The coach wasn't at Tuesday evening's Sterling City Council meeting, but the council and Sterling Planning Commission could likely relate to his quote by the end of their joint work session for the city's master plan update.

McCool Development Solutions presented the update's draft goals and objectives to the group during the work session, and though they received draft action plans for each objective, some were focused more on the "how" of the plan than the "what."

"We're making sure (the update's) on the right track for our goals," said Carrie McCool, of McCool Development, after the meeting. "We want to be in line. We'll be hearing from the community."

McCool said the city council and planning commission would work on the implementation plan - which will more specifically outline how to implement the goals set by the master plan - only after the plan is adopted.

The original date for a public hearing on the plan was set for April 3, but the council and McCool agreed that the draft plan would require more time for feedback from the community and other organizations. The public hearing will likely be scheduled in May, they said.

During the rest of the meeting, the city council and the planning commission heard a run-through of some of the update's drafted graphic and plan elements.

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Master plan graphics

Many of the graphical aspects of the master plan update weren't new to the council or the commission, as they were developed and shown at previous work sessions.

But McCool Development was able to map out more intricate land use plan draft for the first time.

And the transportation and connectivity plan, which initially mapped primary and secondary roads, now listed future bus stops, bike routes and trails. McCool said there was "real opportunity" for a regional trail system around Sterling, especially along the South Platte River and the west side of the city.

They also identified three "opportunity areas" that the city needs a greater focus on: the downtown Sterling area roughly between Chestnut Street, Front Street and S. Division Avenue, the "Energy" area between I-76 and the railroad tracks and the W. Main Street area.

"There's a lot of opportunity to make that whole corridor more usable. A lot cuter," McCool said, of W. Main Street. "There's a lot of opportunity there."

According to the plans, future growth would also come from the inside out, enacted through three "tiers" of development.

First, development would stay largely within city limits in "shovel-ready" zones that are close to existing water and sewer systems. The second tier would expand growth to areas not far from the current city limits, filling in the gaps between the current boundaries that mostly exist on the north and west sides. The third tier involves possible expansion, which is a possibility, but would cost more.

Master plan goals

McCool ran through the myriad plan elements, covering everything from land and economic growth to parks, infrastructure and services, but the council and commission only had a handful of comments on them.

The biggest question concerned the use of "Neighborhood Centers" - an idea that was discussed at a January community workshop that would plan neighborhoods in self-contained clusters. Ideally, the seven centers McCool Development identified would center around parks, civic uses, facilities or businesses and be within walking distance for residents near the clusters.

Mayor Heather Brungardt asked where the idea came from and wondered if anyone had asked if it was a necessity.

McCool said they had heard from the community that they wanted more connection, and that more than 60 percent at the January workshop said they either strongly or somewhat supported the idea.

Council member Patrick Lawson agreed with Brungardt.

"It wasn't a matter of support. I support the concept, it sounds nice," he said. "But for me, especially commercial, we already have three district areas that ... aren't connected in this town."

McCool said she saw an opportunity -- especially if the city sees an energy boom -- for the plan to work. If a housing developer wanted to develop a 200-lot subdivision, she said, she'd want it to be "master plannable," meaning walkable and close to civic uses like schools.

"If we had $100 billion of course, but the question is where it ranks," on priorities, Brungardt said, later being reminded that the council and commission are in charge of setting priorities.

Planning Commission Chairman Roger Hosea said they could offer incentives to businesses to build in the centers.

The plan also recommends pursuing annexation of subdivisions adjacent to the city limits and serviced by city services.

McCool elaborated by saying that the city could modify its street cross-subsections for those subdivisions.

"I heard that a lot of people who lived outside the city would be in the city, but they didn't want to put in curbs or guttered sidewalks," McCool said. "For these rural type developments, you guys can adopt those measures ... in keeping with the area because it's a little outside of town."

The plan will also focus on balancing the downtown area to bring a mix of entertainment, employment and housing.

Lawson, who wanted to know more about mixed-use housing, was told it was making a comeback in Colorado, "especially in downtowns." McCool said it's better to have a downtown where people can live, work and eat.

Next steps

Council members agreed unanimously that they'd like the see the final product come in a magazine format, which works better for maps.

The other choice, spiral-bound, was panned because they "fall apart" and are less visibly attractive.

In the mean time, McCool Development will look for more comments on the guiding principles and plan elements through the next week before completing a new draft.

They'll send out a full draft to citizens -- putting some out for public access in places like Sterling Public Library -- as well as to staff for a red flag review.

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